More Democracy Reforms

You hear it all the time, from voices across the political spectrum: Government is broken.

Democracies aren't naturally efficient, but history tells us that ours can work if we work at it. Common Cause is doing just that. In Washington, we're working to overturn the U.S. Senate's filibuster rule, which requires a supermajority -- 60 votes -- to conduct even routine business. We've also taken on ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, a lobby that masquerades as a charity and enjoys an illegal tax exemption as it brings state legislators together for private meetings and law-writing sessions at posh resorts.

And across the country, our state chapters are pushing strong lobbying laws, open meetings requirements and other common sense steps to clear sand out of the gears of government.

Common Cause regularly publishes such election year scorecards. This one is different from its predecessors in its listing of sponsorships and co-sponsorships rather than actual votes. Congress unfortunately is now so gridlocked that common sense reform measures like those listed here rarely come to a vote in either the House or Senate. For the House portion of this scorecard, we were able to include a few votes on amendments and procedural questions concerning money-in-politics issues. Those measures included an amendment requiring tax-exempt “social welfare” organizations to disclose their political spending and another authorizing the Securities and Exchange Commission to develop a rule requiring publicly traded corporations to disclose their political spending. Learn More ›

There is a threat to our democracy so severe it is shocking it has gone unnoticed this long, or been dismissed as impossible by the few who know about it and should be sounding the alarm. The threat is a constitutional convention, convened on the petitions of at least 34 state legislatures as specified under an Article V of the Constitution and empowered to rewrite or propose new amendments to that document. Given the current hyper-partisan environment of U.S. politics, the power of special and corporate interests in the post-Citizens United era, the call for a convention poses a huge threat to the nation. Learn More ›

We are proud to support the NAACP’s call to show the entire nation that our lives, our votes, our jobs and our schools matter – and to help build an inclusive, responsive, and equal democracy for everyone. Learn More ›

In a partnership with Trillium Asset Management and several advocacy organizations, Common Cause is in the forefront of campaigns to push Bank of America, the nation's second-largest bank, and 3M, a major manufacturer, to stop drawing funds from their general treasuries to spend on politics. Learn More ›

American government is based on the principle of majority rule. But in the U.S. Senate, a minority has turned that principle upside down.
The filibuster rule, designed to protect the minority's right to be heard, has been transformed into a weapon that allows just 41 of 100 senators to squelch debate and block action on any bill, no matter its importance or public support. Learn More ›

Common Cause Wisconsin holds meetings, and public "reform forums" across the state each year, typically on university campuses and in collaboration with their political science departments, student organizations and other advocacy groups. Learn More ›